Why real estate at CSUF?

California State University, Fullerton sits at the geographic heart of the Southern California real estate community, one of the most active commercial markets in the country. Southern California represents hundreds of billions in annual transaction volume, and CSUF's graduates go on to work at the firms driving those transactions.

This is where much of the modern playbook was written. The master-planned community was invented and refined here, and South Coast Plaza and Fashion Island reset what a regional center could be. Practitioners carried those cutting-edge insights from Orange County to the rest of the world, founding the first real estate school in Russia and consulting on how real estate law was codified in China.

The developers, brokers, and operators who built Orange County and influenced how real estate is managed internationally now serve on the CSUF Center for Real Estate advisory board and mentor the students this foundation supports.

And the industry only grows more complex. The United States is projected to hold roughly 126 billion square feet of commercial real estate by 2050, and every square foot trades through deepening layers of capital, regulation, and risk. Expertise has never been more essential. The foundation exists to build it, turning one of the deepest pools of real estate talent anywhere into mentorship and knowledge transfer for the next generation.

The competitive advantage

Most real estate programs teach theory. The CSUF Center for Real Estate — supported by the foundation — goes further:

• In-person ARGUS Enterprise certification — a credential most junior hires spend their first two years pursuing
• On-campus IREM badge courses completed before graduation
• Direct mentorship from practitioners in investment, development, brokerage, and asset management
• 100% internship placement with leading Southern California real estate firms

In the news

Coverage of the foundation's programs and partnerships.

Additional resources

Articles and writing that shaped the foundation's thinking.

Board of Directors

The foundation's Board of Directors brings together senior practitioners from across the commercial real estate industry, united by a commitment to developing the next generation of talent.

RT

Board Chair · Co-Founder

Robert M. Taylor, MBA, CRE, CPM, CSM, CIPS

President, REMM International · Co-Founder, CSUF Center for Real Estate

Robert M. Taylor is President of REMM International and a co-founder of the Center for Real Estate at California State University, Fullerton, where he has played a pivotal role in building one of the nation's leading undergraduate real estate programs. A veteran of the industry with decades of experience across multifamily, office, retail, and industrial assets, Taylor is widely recognized for his entrepreneurial leadership and long-term investment perspective.

He founded The REMM Group, which grew into one of the top real estate management firms in the United States before its sale in 2014, and continues to advise and lead multiple real estate ventures. His global influence includes consulting with government ministries and private enterprises across China and co-founding a real estate college in Russia.

Taylor's commitment to education and workforce development is central to his legacy. Through the Center for Real Estate, he has helped create innovative, industry-integrated programs and has personally mentored and connected hundreds of students to careers in the field.

He holds an MBA from California State University, Fullerton, and holds the Counselor of Real Estate (CRE), Certified Property Manager (CPM), Certified Shopping Center Manager (CSM), and Certified International Property Specialist (CIPS) designations, among other professional distinctions.

TG

Director

Tim Gorman, CRE

Principal Broker, Gorman & Associates

Tim Gorman, CRE, serves as Principal Broker of Gorman & Associates. A CPA with more than two decades advising on multifamily, commercial, and residential investment portfolios, he specializes in acquisitions, 1031 exchanges, and legacy-minded portfolio planning for high-net-worth families — pioneering a discipline he calls Legacy Readiness. He also sits on the advisory board of a publicly traded REIT.

He is the author of Tangled Legacy and Building Blocks to a Complete Estate Plan, a monthly Apartment News columnist, and a sought-after keynote speaker.

Tim co-founded the Robby Gomez Foundation, which has raised over $100,000 for CHOC and Ronald McDonald House, and advises the Orange Catholic Foundation on affordable housing and sustainable-income real estate. A proud Titan, he also contributes to CSUF's Business Honors program.

BO

Director

Bob Osbrink

Executive Vice President, Graystone Capital Advisors · Co-Founder, CSUF Center for Real Estate

Bob Osbrink brings over four decades of commercial real estate leadership to the Titan Board. A Southern California native, he played a formative role in the development of landmark Orange County communities during the 1980s — including Irvine Spectrum, Foothill Ranch, and Rancho Santa Margarita — before building a career leading high-performing investment sales teams at some of the industry's most respected firms. He rose from Sales Manager to Co-CEO at Grubb & Ellis and has held executive roles at The Irvine Company, Cushman & Wakefield, Marcus & Millichap, Matthews Real Estate Investment Services, and Newmark Knight Frank.

He currently serves as Executive Vice President at Graystone Capital Advisors, where he leads strategic growth and talent development across the firm's national platform. His reputation as a builder of teams is reflected across his career: at Marcus & Millichap's Newport Beach office he helped achieve the highest revenue in the office's history, and at Matthews he grew the Phoenix brokerage team from six to forty-eight.

Bob's civic contributions span healthcare and education. He served on the Advisory Board of the House Ear Institute for nearly a decade, contributing to FDA approval of the Cochlear Implant and founding the Parent to Parent Program. As the founding Director of the CSUF Center for Real Estate, he helped establish the program that continues to shape the university's real estate education today. He has advised the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate, the CSUF Real Estate and Land Use Institute (where he remains an active board member), and the USC Center for Real Estate. A proud Trojan who lettered in basketball, he also serves as President of USC's basketball alumni association.

MG

Director

Mark Guithues, JD

Founding Partner, Community Legal Advisors · Faculty, CSU Fullerton

Mark Guithues is the founding partner of Community Legal Advisors and a recognized leader in community association and real estate law. With more than two decades of experience, he has advised hundreds of residential and commercial developments, specializing in governance, development structuring, and complex legal matters.

A licensed California attorney and real estate broker, Mark has played a direct role in shaping industry policy, including serving as a stakeholder in the rewrite of the Davis-Stirling Act and contributing to legislative initiatives through CACM and CAI.

He recently joined the faculty at California State University, Fullerton, where he teaches real estate law.

AP

Director

Dr. Anil Puri

Provost & Vice President Emeritus of Academic Affairs · Dean Emeritus, College of Business and Economics, CSU Fullerton

Dr. Puri served as the Dean of the College of Business and Economics at California State University, Fullerton from 1998 to 2016. Prior to becoming Dean in 1998, Dr. Puri was department chair and professor of economics at California State University, Fullerton since 1977, and in 2018 was honored as Provost and Vice President Emeritus of Academic Affairs. He has previously served and counseled public boards and has been a Director of Mitel (Delaware), Inc. since May 2006 and of Crexendo, Inc. since November 2008.

Dr. Puri is a noted economist and scholar who has served as the Executive Vice President of the Western Economic Association International — the second largest professional association of economists in the United States — and is a member of the American Economic Association and the National Association of Business Economists.

As acting Director of the Woods Center for Economic Analyses & Forecasting, Dr. Puri has presented the California State University, Fullerton Annual Economic Forecasts since 1993 alongside colleague and Co-Director Mira Farka, Ph.D. He is a member of the Western Economic Association International and the Association of University Bureaus of Economic Research, and has authored numerous journal articles in the field of economics, conducting economic presentations every year to business, community and professional organizations.

His research has been published in leading academic journals such as the National Tax Journal, Policy Studies Journal, Journal of Conflict Resolution, and the International Journal of Forecasting.

He received Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Economics from Punjab University in India, and holds a Master's degree and a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Minnesota.

Executive Leadership

Foundation staff lead day-to-day operations, partnerships, and program delivery in service of the board's strategic direction.

LC

Executive Director

Linsey Carbone

Executive Director, Titan Real Estate Opportunity Foundation · Managing Partner, Titan Real Estate Valuation

Linsey Carbone is Executive Director of the Titan Real Estate Opportunity Foundation, where she leads strategic partnerships, fundraising, and program initiatives that expand access to careers in real estate. Since 2026, she has focused on building a strong ecosystem of industry, academic, and community stakeholders to advance the Foundation's mission and long-term impact.

Carbone brings a cross-sector leadership background spanning nonprofit organizations, higher education, and private industry. Her work emphasizes stakeholder engagement, donor alignment, and scalable program development. She has held leadership roles with organizations including Mental Health America of Los Angeles and Vanguard University, and currently serves on the boards of the CSUF Center for Real Estate and Integrated AI Solutions.

A committed advocate for student opportunity, Carbone has been actively involved with California State University, Fullerton's Center for Real Estate as both a mentor and board member, helping connect students with industry pathways. With a long-standing background in real estate spanning residential sales and commercial development, she also serves as Managing Partner of Titan Real Estate Valuation, grounding her nonprofit leadership in current market expertise.

Carbone holds an MBA in Finance from Pepperdine University, an MA from Wake Forest University, and a BA from Westmont College.

ARGUS Enterprise Training

ARGUS Enterprise is the financial modeling software of record for institutional real estate investors, developers, and asset managers. Fluency in the platform is a baseline expectation at many leading firms — yet formal training is rarely available at the university level.

CSUF is one of only a handful of universities in the country offering in-person, hands-on ARGUS instruction. That is only possible because the foundation funds it.

Students work through a full certification curriculum under faculty instruction. They graduate with a recognized credential and the practical skills to deploy the software from their first day on the job.

Program details

Cohorts are kept intentionally small — typically 10 to 12 scholars per term — so every student receives hands-on instruction and individual attention. The training is offered in both the Spring and Fall semesters.

The foundation funds approximately $750 per student, covering software access, semester-long instruction, and the certification exam. Each gift at that level puts one more student through full ARGUS Enterprise certification.

Professional Credentials & Certificates

The foundation brings recognized industry credentialing onto campus so students build a professional profile before they graduate. Through a partnership funded by the foundation, students complete IREM badge courses on campus — credentials that typically represent hundreds of dollars in fees and years of post-graduation effort. The Institute of Real Estate Management is the leading professional association for property and asset management.

Students also attend on-campus lectures led by CCIM and SIOR designees — among the most respected credentials in commercial brokerage and investment — earning certificates of attendance that document their professional development. Together, these put students on a credentialing path most of their peers will not begin for years.

Program details

Offerings rotate from term to term. A sampling of past courses and lectures includes:

• CPM^® Fast-Track
• Accredited Commercial Manager (ACoM)
• Leasing (Skill Badge)
• Marketing (Skill Badge)

• AI-Powered CRE Tools & Tactics
• Introduction to Commercial Real Estate Investment Analysis

Mentorship & Internship Pipeline

The foundation connects students directly with real estate professionals across Southern California through a structured mentorship and internship placement program. Relationships are built deliberately — pairing students with practitioners in their area of interest — rather than through informal networking alone.

The outcome: CSUF real estate students have achieved 100% internship placement with leading real estate firms across the region.

Students complete the program not only with a degree, but with documented professional experience, an active mentor relationship, and a professional network already in place.

For industry professionals

Interested in becoming a mentor or hosting an intern? The foundation manages the matching process and provides structure for the engagement.

Interested in mentoring a student? Email CRE@fullerton.edu.

Applied Valuation Practicum

The Applied Valuation Practicum is the capstone of everything the foundation builds toward. Through a partnership with Titan Real Estate Valuation, a mission-driven appraisal and analysis firm, newly ARGUS-certified analysts step directly into paid, real-world engagements for actual clients, not simulations.

Each analyst works inside Titan's three-tier model: students perform institutional-grade research and ARGUS modeling, senior professionals review the methodology, and a Counselor of Real Estate certifies the final work. Analysts are paired with a CRE mentor and trained on bleeding-edge technology, including the AI tools reshaping how valuation is done.

We believe there is nothing else like it anywhere: a firm that trains students on live client work, mentors them toward the profession's highest credential, and reinvests its earnings into their education.

What analysts gain

• Paid, real-world engagements: lease analysis, appraisals, acquisition underwriting, market studies, and litigation support
• One-on-one mentorship from a Counselor of Real Estate, one of the most respected designations in the profession
• Hands-on training in AI and the emerging technology reshaping valuation
• A portfolio of defensible, professional-grade work before graduation